Mercedes to test self-driving cars at Concord weapons depot

A former Bay Area weapons depot, closed by the U.S. Navy in 2007, has a new mission — testing self-driving cars.

The Concord Naval Weapons Station, closed by the Navy 7 years ago. Photo: The Chronicle

Mercedes-Benz reported Wednesday that it will use the shuttered Concord Naval Weapons Station to test autonomous cars and traffic signals that can communicate with them. Mercedes has a research lab located not too far away, in Sunnyvale, and the old station’s 19.6 miles of paved roads — sealed off from the public — should provide an excellent test bed.

“We can use the test site in Concord, California, to run simulation tests with self-driving vehicles in a secure way, including specific hazardous situations,” said Axel Gern, head of autonomous driving at Mercedes-Benz Research and Development North America, in a statement.

The German automaker also received a license from the state of California last month to test autonomous cars on public roads. Mercedes has already conducted similar tests closer to home: a self-driving S-Class sedan made the 62-mile trip between the German cities of Mannheim and Pforzheim last year.

Photo: The Chronicle

The old weapons depot, in contrast, offers a more closed-off and controlled environment. Its roads, which connect rows of grass-covered bunkers, form a rough approximation of a city street grid. Mercedes is scheduled to begin testing there this month.

The station opened in 1942 and supplied ships docked nearby at Port Chicago. It is now in the process of being transferred to the city of Concord.